On This Day
by Where the Story Ends
Summary: A District 13 rebel army general gives a motivational speech urging the citizens of Panem to rebel which draws comparison to the 13 districts fight for independence and the American Revolution.  Happy fourth everyone!


**Please at least read the bold of this AN because it's kinda important to your understanding of the story! **

Hello wonderful members of the Fanfiction community and fellow Hunger Games lovers! I had a couple hours before any Fourth of July action started so I sat down and whipped this out**. It's a one shot that I envision is set in Mockinjay when the Capitol is broadcasting about how Katniss, Finnick, Peeta and the rest of their crew are killed in that one house but before they can get that announcement out Beetee takes control and plays this speech by the rebel army leader I just created.** There is a lot of historical reference and I hope it's pretty accurate I was just spitting stuff out I remembered from American History class a couple years back. Oh and you might notice later I had my character mention President Coin in a positive light, but I kinda had to since he was mentioning leaders and she was still alive and his president... so sorry!

The Hunger Games are not mine… they're all Suzanne Collins. Only Maximus is mine… if the rest was mine Finnick would still be with us and Johanna would have had a much bigger role.

Anyways sorry for the long note! And hope you enjoy!

On This Day

"Hello, fellow citizens of Panem. My name is General Maximus Olympius and I am from District 13. They say on this day, July 4th, that the predecessor to Panem, which they call the United States of America, declared its independence in the year 1776 from the imperialistic power Great Britain. They say it was a bold move, that this place America was really just thirteen little powerless colonies subject to the control of the domineering British Empire. They say that the British had a far superior army and naval fleet… no one thought the red coats could lose. To make matters worse, the citizens of the colonies were divided amongst themselves: the Patriots who wanted sovereignty and the Loyalists who sided with the British. There were also those who sided with the Patriots but were too afraid to make their allegiance known and take action. Nobody truly believed those thirteen colonies could put up much of a fight; the British were much too powerful.

Isn't that exactly where we find ourselves today? We, the thirteen districts of Panem, are clearly subject to the Capitol's every whim. We are divided amongst ourselves, most of us hate the Capitol, but yet are too afraid to mobilize against it. The districts also have Peacekeepers who are like the Loyalists that want to protect the Capitol rule. When the colonies declared their independence it was unbelievably courageous for they had a long fight ahead of them that few believed they could win. It's hard to imagine that anyone truly thought they could win the war which came to be known as the American Revolution. However, they did… against all odds.

They had a few advantages that ended up defining the war. First, there was the spark which united the colonies in action, the Battles of Lexington and Concord. The first shot fired there is now known as the "Shot Heard Round the World" because its effects reverberated throughout all of history. For all the other colonies, since District 13 has been mobilizing for war since the so called "Dark Days", the spark was young revolutionary Katniss Everdeen holding up those berries. It was the most public act of blatant defiance to the Capitol in history. Even better, she got away with it. The Girl on Fire had ignited the revolution in a single moment.

The colonists had more to fight for than the British. The colonists were fighting for sovereignty and the end of oppression. In comparison, the British engaged in war to keep a handful of colonies they thought were good economic investments. The British weren't fighting for themselves, their families, and future generations. They were simply fighting to keep a financial asset. The colonists were desperate to break free and obtain sovereignty. They wished to live in a free, prosperous land. They wanted to set their own laws and government. This was denied to them by the British and is now denied to us by the Capitol.

The colonists had a great leader, General George Washington. Washington was a fine tactician and a very charismatic man. He was selfless and devoted himself completely to the war effort. Eventually he became the nation's first president and excelled at that as well. His decisions influenced America's government for centuries. For instance, he started what became known as the cabinet. The cabinet was made up of men that were very knowledgeable and proficient in certain fields. The first cabinet included the Secretary of State, War, Treasury and the Attorney General. This became a very important precedent in the American Government because the President is not omnipresent and all-knowing; he needs help from others who are more enlightened in certain areas. He also set the precedent of only two terms, which were 4 year segments, as President, this precedent was broken just once but never again. The President should be limited in his power, there should be certain checks to make sure he doesn't overstep his bounds and take away the rights of citizens.

Our dear President Coriolanus Snow clearly has limitless power. I believe we have the right to limit his power. John Locke, a famous pre-Panem philosopher, wrote in length about the idea of the social contract. The social contract is a theory on the existence and necessity of government. John Locke believed there was an ideological state of nature, which is in a sense a utopia, in which everyone took only what they needed and didn't infringe on what others needed. However, due to human weakness, a state of war could occur when someone threatened another person's self or property. Due to the potential for state of war he argued the citizens entered a mutual contract with the government. In this contract, the government had to supply certain services to the people in exchange for other services. Among other things, the government was to protect the welfare of the people in exchange for obedience and hard work from the people. However, Locke said if the government and its leaders act against the best interests of the people; the people have the right, or even obligation, to dissolve the government. Once this occurs, the process of rebuilding the government to better suit the needs of the people can begin anew.

We should accept tyranny no longer. The Capitol doesn't have the great leaders we have such as Katniss Everdeen, Peeta Melark, President Coin, Finnick Odair, Johanna Mason, and all of our fine military commanders. The Capitol's leaders are corrupt and care only about maintaining office. They don't care about the well-being of the people. We do.

So, I ask you this Panem, do you have what it takes? Do you have what it takes to rise above the fear we all feel and fight? Do you have what it takes to bravely follow in the footsteps of some of our heroes, Katniss Everdeen, Peeta Melark, Finnick Odair, and Johanna Mason? Do you have what it takes to transcend simply being another disgruntled citizen to become a soldier for a better tomorrow? Do you have what it takes to support the Mockingjay, not just with an unspoken opinion but with your actions? Do you have what it takes to go upset the established order out in the streets? Do you have what it takes to be someone in this war? Do you have what it takes?

As I speak, the Capitol is under siege. The brave soldiers of District 13 are fighting for _you_. The Mockingjay is out there, fighting for _you_. To win this battle, this _war, _we need _you_. We need _you_ to resist the capitol in your own districts. They will not be able to handle full-scale rebellion in all the districts and their backyard. They have superior weaponry and technology, but so did the British. _We_ have numbers, _we_ have more to fight for, _we_ have stronger leaders, and _we_ have a stronger will. I don't just believe we will win this revolution, I believe with your help we cannot lose. It's time to end tyranny. It's time to establish true order and peace. It's time that we, the citizens, mattered. It's time that we had true rights. It's time for change.

One way or another, this revolution will end with the death of Coriolanus Snow. This revolution will end with our Mockinjay triumphant. This revolution will end with the destruction of the Capitol. We will win. One way or another, we will establish a new system of government where we have a say in the legislative acts of government. We will have a government where the President is subject to the wishes of the people. We will have a government where we have rights. In America, they believed everyone had certain inalienable rights… the rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. It is time we get those back again. We don't have the right to life when we aren't truly living and it is seen as good fun to watch children fight to the death. We don't have the right to liberty when we aren't truly free. We don't have the right to the pursuit of happiness when we are oppressed into submission. But… _we will_.

Hopefully, this has not been in vain. Hopefully, you realize the importance of taking action. If you're too afraid, think about the children that are reaped. They are scared. However, they realize it is kill or be killed. They are forced into action. You may think you have a choice, but do me a favor and think about your life and compare it to the life you wished you were living. Now, ask yourself again, do I _truly_ have a choice?"


End file.
